Stay Alive
by lomax89
Summary: After Harry, Dudley wasn't sure what it meant to be a good person. After the war, Pansy just wanted a normal life. But when they both witness something shocking, they are forced to survive in an unfamiliar world, and learn things about Wizards and Muggles that nobody would have thought possible.
1. Chapter 1

Pansy Parkinson was not in a good mood. As she stormed along the busy suburban street, she cursed her family name and the war that had destroyed it. But most of all, she cursed her own actions.

Life was not easy when the entire world knew you as ''the girl who wanted to hand Potter over.'' Anywhere with a large wizarding population was a no-go area for Pansy. She couldn't visit Diagon Alley without being fixed with a hundred icy glares. She remembered the last time she had visited the alley, when she had waved at a small child who had smiled at her, only for the mother to drag the child away when she saw the object of it's interest. She remembered the tears threatening to spill at the fact she was now a pariah. A _monster_.

She supposed life could be worse. Pansy had been lucky enough to avoid a spell in Azkaban. Neither she nor her parents were actual Death Eaters, but they weren't slow to acknowledge that they agreed with what the Dark Lord was saying. And in the panic and frenzy after the Dark Lord's death, Kingsley Shacklebolt's ministry had made even being a sympathizer a criminal offence. Pansy vividly remembered the Parkinson mansion being raided by aurors in the middle of the night, and the three of them being arrested and charged. Pansy's young age and naivety was helpful to her defence and had managed to get her a lenient sentence. Her parents had not been so lucky.

Both of them had been sentenced to four months imprisonment, though they were released at the midpoint of two months. That two months alone in the mansion had given Pansy a lot of time to think. Draco Malfoy and the rest of her school friends abandoned her, and she was truly alone for the first time in her life. Even with it's reputation in tatters, the Parkinson family had money. Enough money that Pansy would never have to work a day in her life if she didn't wish to. However, having to stand up in a courtroom and hear the worst parts of her said out loud, seeing the glares on the faces of random passers-by, made Pansy want a different life.

Pansy wanted an ordinary life. To be just another witch with a normal wizarding job, not the daughter of two Death Eater sympathisers, who had knowingly chosen to throw the Chosen One to the wolves just to save her own skin. She knew that it would not be easy, but perhaps she could be known for something other than her mistakes. Her parents had gifted her with two thousand galleons to get her started, but she'd insisted that the rest of her money would be earned by herself. Before the war, the Wizarding World was very much a place where money talks. With her family's reputation, she could have walked out of Hogwarts and gotten a job within a day. But now, the name ''Parkinson'' was one people looked at with disgust.

She'd decided her future career lay in potions. Professor Snape had made sure that all of his Slytherins were at least decent at the subject, and she had enjoyed it at school. She tried Diagon Alley to begin with, but it soon became obvious that she wasn't welcome. Eventually, her tireless searching had brought her to an apothecary outside of London, where her efforts had got her all the way to the interview stage!

Sadly, it had proven too good to be true. The manager had told Pansy that ''just wasn't right for the role'', in spite of the fact that she had both the skills and the qualifications. She knew the snotty bitch just didn't want to look at _the Potter traitor_ every single day.

As her high heels clicked along the ground, Pansy had to fight to stop herself bursting into tears. Her mistakes were going to define her for the rest of her life.

She needed to find somewhere hidden so she could apparate back home. She couldn't do it out in the open with all the bloody _Muggles_ around. She cursed herself. Pansy knew it was wrong to hate Muggles, but she'd been raised to hate them since early childhood. It was ingrained in her that they were vermin, worse than animals, and though she did not want to be that person anymore, it would not be easy to rid herself of those beliefs.

Finally, she saw what looked like an alleyway and stepped inside to see if it was empty.

* * *

Dudley Dursley trudged along frustratedly. He'd been turned down again! Life had not been easy since he and his parents came out of hiding. Although he was forever grateful to Harry for keeping them safe, the fact that he'd basically disappeared meant that picking up where he left off would not be easy. Restarting his boxing career seemed almost impossible, but Dudley was hoping he would be able to take up coaching or something similar. Perhaps help younger children to not make the same mistakes he did.

Dudley still had nightmares about that night, the night those _Dementor_ things that he couldn't see had attacked him. It was the night that Dudley finally saw what everyone else saw when they looked at him. A vile, cruel thug. It was then that Dudley had realised he needed to mend his ways. He could easily have just let his parents take care of things for him. His dad had offered him a job at Grunnings, but Dudley had insisted that he find a job off his own back.

The trouble was, getting a job when you have barely any experience or qualifications wasn't easy, especially when there are many others applying for the same position. He'd popped into a gym half an hour from his home to ask if they had any work going, but he'd been told there were no vacancies.

Dudley plodded along the street, only to realise that he'd taken the wrong turn. The bus stop was on the other side of the buildings. Dudley mentally kicked himself, but was lucky to find an alleyway which seemed to lead directly there.

* * *

Pansy was disappointed to see a group of several Muggle men stood in the alleyway. Not because she took any issue with them, but because it would mean she couldn't disapparate here without breaking the law. She turned to leave, but noticed one of the men pull something from his pocket. It was like a small, metal wand. He pointed it at a man who lay on the ground, cowering.

''You didn't think I'd figure it out?'' the man sneered, ''That I couldn't smell a _grass_ from a mile off? You must be even more stupid than you look.'' He pulled the trigger, and a second later the cowering man's head flopped to the ground in a pool of blood.

Pansy let out a whimper, which drew the men's attention to her. That was a mistake.

One of the men lunged at her. Instinctively, Pansy shot a stunner at him, sending him to the ground.

''What was that?'' the man who had killed the other shouted.

Pansy realised she had made a huge mistake. She had used magic on a Muggle! It was time to go. Just as she was about to disapparate, Pansy felt herself being grabbed from behind. She was hardly physically strong, and stood no chance of getting out of the grip. She also felt a hand pulling at her wand hand, ripping the wand out of her grasp. The killer smirked at her before throwing the wand, as Pansy kept kicking with her stilettos.

* * *

Dudley wasn't sure what shocked him more. The fact that he'd just seen a man murdered in broad daylight or the fact that he'd just seen what was clearly a witch. He'd seen the woman blast a man down with what he knew to be wand. However, the gang had overpowered her and taken the wand. Dudley knew he needed to help.

''Oi!'' he shouted. He gave the first man to turn around a hook to the jaw, knocking him to the ground. As a large, muscular man held the witch, two others turned on Dudley.

''You need to learn to stay out of my business,'' one of them said. Dudley gave him a hard blow to the chest, which knocked him back. However, the other man gave Dudley a kick to the shin. Dudley gave a roar of pain, only for both men to jump at him with a barrage of punches and kicks.

Dudley fell to the ground and the men did not stop, until everything had gone black.

* * *

Pansy could barely breath, she was being squeezed so tight. She screeched and kicked, but it was no use. At last, the man grabbing her put her arm around her neck and began squeezing tightly. Pansy wheezed and struggled, but she felt her vision becoming blurred and everything becoming less clear, the darkness consuming everything.

* * *

 **I've always sort-of shipped Dudley and Pansy for some reason and have always wanted to write a fic with them in. This will be set entirely in the Muggle world with a Muggle crime syndicate as the villains. I'm not expecting this to be long. Maybe 10 chapters at the absolute most. Hope you guys are enjoying it so far.**

 **Please leave a review and say what you think!**


	2. Chapter 2

_Dudley was running alongside Harry, fleeing something he couldn't see. He felt himself being lifted into the air, and reality warping around him. Suddenly, he was Mark Evans, terrified as a boy twice his size pounded him to the floor. Then he was Harry, an innocent boy running away as Dudley and the rest of the gang chased after him. Being the hunted rather than the hunter was frightening. He saw, at long last, what everyone else saw when they looked at Dudley Dursley._

* * *

Dudley woke up groggily. He wondered when, if ever, his dreams were going to stop replaying that terrible day whenever he slept. As he pondered, memories from not long previously popped into his mind, as he realised what had happened. He jolted upwards, only to find himself pulled down. His left arm was handcuffed to a chain, while his right was handcuffed to a slender, manicured hand. Dudley turned to see the witch, also handcuffed to another chain, sat cross-legged against the wall. She had a haughty expression on her face. It should have been the last thing on his mind due to the situation, but she was very pretty.

''Sleep well?'' she asked sarcastically.

''I've had better nights,'' Dudley replied. From the vibrations, he could tell they were inside a moving vehicle. Possibly a van of some kind. The chains holding them were hooked to metal panels screwed onto the walls. There was no way they could get out.

''I thought my life couldn't get any worse,'' the witch spat frustratedly, ''Why are you in here?''

''Saw them kill someone. Tried to fight them off,'' Dudley replied.

''I saw it too,'' the witch replied, ''Do you know who they are?''

''Not a clue,'' Dudley said, ''Can't say I want to either. Whoever they are, they're dangerous.''

''This whole thing is nothing to do with me,'' the witch remarked, ''This isn't my world!''

''The name's Dudley, by the way.''

''Pansy.''

''Nice name,'' Dudley commented. Pansy smiled in spite of herself.

''Do you know where we're going?'' Pansy asked.

''Nope,'' Dudley answered, ''They picked us up from Surrey, but I can't say where they're driving us to.''

''Brilliant,'' Pansy spat.

''Tell you one thing,'' Dudley began, ''Bet you wish you could whip your wand out and break these chains off!''

* * *

Pansy's day could not get any worse. Being wandless, stuck in a Muggle vehicle, in the company of an idiotic Muggle whose chatter was both irritating and mildly entertaining. That was, until the Muggle just mentioned that he knew she had a wand.

''What did you say?'' Pansy questioned, eyes narrowing.

''I saw you shoot down one of those guys with it,'' Dudley revealed, ''That's why I jumped in.''

''What makes you think it's a wand?'' Pansy asked, deciding to test how much he knew.

''I've met wizards before,'' Dudley told her, ''Got a bit of a shock seeing you do that. Makes you a bit paranoid to think that anyone could be one.''

Pansy smirked. The day had just gotten a lot more interesting.

* * *

''This must be the first time you've travelled in a van before,'' remarked Dudley, ''You wizards prefer your broomsticks, don't you?''

''Apparition is easier,'' Pansy said.

''Is that the _whoosh_ thing you do?'' he made a fast gesture with his hands.

Pansy nodded, ''If I had my wand I could do it now, or at least break us out of these chains. Without it I'm useless. Pretty much sums my life up, that word.''

''You seem OK to me,'' Dudley said softly.

''How much do you know about the Wizarding World?'' Pansy asked him.

''A little.''

''Does the name ''Parkinson'' ring any bells?'' she prodded.

''Nah. Never heard it before in my life,'' Dudley replied.

''Lucky you,'' Pansy giggled humourlessly, ''I did something stupid, and the whole world knows about it. Everywhere I go I get stared at. I can't get a job. I have no friends. That's what brought me to Surrey. I tried to get a potions job out of London, but even they didn't want me.''

''What's the bad thing you did?'' Dudley asked.

''You really don't want to know,'' Pansy said, ''I spend every night wishing I could take it back.''

Suddenly, the van slowed down.

''Where are we?'' Pansy asked. Dudley shrugged his shoulders. The back doors suddenly swung open to reveal several powerfully built men. The one in the middle was the one who had murdered the cowering man in the street.

''Hope you enjoyed your flight!'' the murderer sneered at them. Two of his comrades stepped inside to unlock the chains holding them into the van, while keeping the two handcuffed together.

''Who are you?'' Dudley asked, ''What do you want with us?''

''You'll find out,'' the murderer replied. He made a gesture to his comrades and they shoved the two forward, out of the van.

* * *

Pansy and Dudley were marched to a grand looking mansion that was almost as impressive as Parkinson Manor, though it had a distinct blandness that proved it's Muggle nature.

''In you go,'' the man shoving her along said, giving her a push through the door.

''What is this?'' Pansy asked.

''Follow me,'' the murderer ordered. The men began shoving Dudley and Pansy along once more, up a flight of stairs. At last, they reached a spatious room. The murderer stepped inside, and the men behind them gave the two a shove into the room. Inside stood a handsome, blonde-haired man who reminded Pansy of Draco Malfoy. He glared at them as they entered. ''Leave us,'' the murderer ordered the men behind them. They turned and walked out, closing the door behind them.

''What do you want with us?'' Dudley shouted.

''My name's Glenn,'' the murderer said pleasantly, ''I don't wanna hurt you two. But unfortunately I put one bullet in that gun, for the traitor that's been reporting details of my activities to the police. Then you two came along and saw the whole thing, leaving me no choice but to have you contained here until you can be safely disposed of.''

''What will it take for you to let us go?'' Pansy questioned.

''What will it _take_?'' Glenn sneered in response.

''I have money. Lots of it,'' Pansy told him. She'd never had to use Muggle money before, but she'd seen the parents of the Mud- _Muggleborns_ exchanging Wizarding and Muggle money at Gringotts and she knew it wasn't difficult at all.

''Oh I know that,'' Glenn told her, ''They emptied out your pockets when they put you in the van.'' He produced a small tray, in which lay a few of Dudley and Pansy's things. ''We found this.'' He produced a gold galleon. ''A coin made of solid gold. Figured you had to have deep pockets to own something like this.''

''Let us go and we can talk,'' Pansy suggested.

''I don't want your money, darling,'' Glenn sneered, ''My business makes me fifty thousand pounds a week. You really think a bit of charity from you is enough to make me change my mind.'' Pansy had no idea what the exchange rate was, but by the man's boasts, he was clearly wealthy enough that money could not influence him.

''Alright then,'' Dudley started, ''You may as well tell us. What's this all about?''

''Melvin Johnson, the man currently lying dead in a Surrey alleyway, is a police informant. He's been supplying them with information about my business, my contacts, my activities for over a year now.''

''How did you find out?'' Dudley questioned.

''Ryan here...''' Glenn gestured to the blonde man next to him, ''Is a police officer. Detective sergeant Ryan Jillions. Luckily for me, he's decided that his ambitions lie beyond enforcing the law. It's all well and good the police having a man inside my operations, but when I have a man in theirs, it's game over.''

''So you murdered him,'' Pansy surmised.

''Yep,'' Glenn snarled, ''And I'd do it all again.''

''So what are you gonna do with us?'' Dudley asked.

''Kill you? Torture you? Lock you up until you starve to death?'' Glenn thought out loud, ''Still thinking about it. In the mean time, why don't you make yourselves at home?'' You've got the telly. You've got a beautiful view. You should start enjoying it. After all, you're gonna be here a long time.''

Glenn and Ryan smirked at them before striding out of the room. As the door slammed shut, Pansy and Dudley heard the lock turning. Pansy burst into tears. She thought that a few people were baying for her blood after the war, but she did not expect to die at the hands of a psychotic Muggle.

* * *

 **I decided not to have Dudley reveal that he's Harry's cousin just yet, as I think it would make for an interesting conversation between them later on.**

 **The big question is... how are our heroes gonna get out of Glenn's mansion?**

 **Hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Please leave a review and tell me what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3

Neither of them knew how long they had been locked inside the room for. It could have been minutes, it could have been hours. Pansy had stopped crying, and the two sat next to each other, which was mostly out of necessity since they were handcuffed together.

Suddenly, they heard the lock turn. Two muscular men entered the room, carrying chains which ended in handcuffs. One of them connected one of the chains to a metal hook at the far end of the room. He grabbed Pansy from behind and lifted her up, and handcuffed the other end to her free hand. The other man prepared to do the same to Dudley, but Dudley tried to fight back, grabbing the man, who effortlessly threw him to the ground. This was painful for Pansy, since she was pulled by Dudley against the chain holding her to the wall.

''You're no fun,'' the thug sneered at Dudley.

''Let us out of these chains,''' Dudley snapped back as his free hand was chained, ''You'll see exactly how much fun I am.''

The two of them were now forced to stand up by the chains at the end of the room, which pulled at their arms enough to stretch the handcuffs holding them together. This holding system was designed to torture them. The thugs smirked before leaving the room.

''What are we going to do?'' Pansy whimpered. Dudley sighed. They couldn't even move, let alone escape.

* * *

As more time passed, the lock turned again. A very pretty young woman who was immaculately dressed pranced into the room. She had a stethoscope around her neck.

''It's Daddy's new pets!'' she giggled in a way that made both of them shudder.

''What do you want?'' Pansy spat at her.

''Daddy wants me to do a quick health check. See how easy you two are to kill,'' she smirked, ''I'm a medical student. Top of my class. You're in good hands.''

''You're Glenn's daughter?'' Dudley questioned.

'' _You're Glenn's daughter_?'' she repeated in a mocking impression of his voice, ''Glad to see you aren't as stupid as you look. Though that's not difficult since you look like a gorilla.'' She lifted up his shirt and listened to his heart. ''All seems in order, which is surprising, since someone as _fat_ as you should have died of a heart attack by now.''

Pansy regarded the disgusting woman in front of her. In a way, she was reminded of herself not long ago, but she liked to think she hadn't ever been this vicious.

Glenn's daughter looked at Pansy like a wolf noticing pray and started to lift her blouse.

''Don't touch me, you _filthy_ -'' Pansy started instinctively.

'' _Oooh_ , this one's got a bite!'' Glenn's daughter laughed, ''We can't have that now, can we?'' She brought up her hand and flicked Pansy in the eye with her pink, fake fingernail.

''Leave her alone!'' Dudley shouted.

''I don't think I will,'' the woman sneered, continuing to flick Pansy in the eye. Pansy could only whimper. She tried to lunge at her tormenter, but the chains holding her prevented that.

''You're a coward,'' Dudley sneered at the woman, ''You're picking on someone who can't fight back.''

''Yep,'' Glenn's daughter replied, ''And there's absolutely nothing either of you can do about it.''

''You evil little...'' Pansy started.

''That's not very nice, is it?'' Glenn's daughter giggled, flicking her even harder. Eventually, she stopped, and put her hand in her pocket, taking out a set of keys. ''Guess what these are?''

Dudley and Pansy continued to glare at her.

''The keys to your chains.'' She threw them across the room. ''You're never gonna be able to get them. Right in front of you and you can't even touch them! _Ciao_!'' She smirked at them and left the room, locking her door on the way out.

Pansy started to sob.

''Are you OK?'' Dudley questioned.

''No,'' Pansy whimpered.

''She was vile,'' Dudley said, ''Almost as bad as her dad.''

''Sad thing is, I was just like her once,'' Pansy revealed, ''I bullied people.''

''So did I,'' admitted Dudley, ''All the kids in my neighbourhood were scared of me.''

''I used to walk around school like I owned the place,'' Pansy told him, ''Laugh at anyone who looked out of place and say things that I knew would hurt. Just like she did.''

''I had a gang,'' Dudley said, ''We used to march around, beating people up when we knew they couldn't fight back.''

''Maybe we're both monsters,'' Pansy sighed, tears leaking down her face.

''No, we're not,'' Dudley replied, ''The people that put us here. They're the monsters.''

Pansy smiled. For all that her parents had taught her about Muggles, she was genuinely starting to like Dudley.

* * *

Jennifer stood watching the television. News coverage of the murder of Melvin Johnson was starting, with police officers being interviewed and promising to do everything in their power to bring those responsible to justice.

Her husband strode into the room. ''What are you watching this for?''

''Glenn, we have to be careful,'' Jennifer implored, ''This has gone national. If the police trace this back to us-''

''They won't!'' Glenn insisted, ''Ryan knows what he's doing. He'll be able to throw them off the scent.''

''I hope you're right,'' Jennifer murmured, as the couple's daughter, Elly, entered the room.

''You have fun, Princess?'' Glenn asked her.

''Yeah, of course!'' Elly giggled, ''I don't think they did, though!''

Jennifer couldn't help but be proud of her daughter. At 20, she had grown into a beautiful young woman. And her brains and talents had taken her far. She was studying to become a doctor, and Jennifer couldn't be prouder of the person her child had grown into.

''So what do you want to do with your new friends, Princess?'' Glenn asked Elly.

''We get rid of them,'' Jennifer interrupted, ''Ryan might be able to fool the police, but if anyone turns up here asking questions, we don't want them finding two people locked inside a room.''

Glenn seemed to consider. At last, he turned to his wife and nodded. ''Get rid of them.'' he agreed. He pulled open a drawer and withdrew a small pistol.

''But Daddy!'' Elly whined, standing in front of her father and giving him a cute face, being sure to make her eyes look teary, ''I haven't finished with them yet. There's so much more I can do with them!''

''Alright, sweetheart,'' Glenn sighed, ''Anything to make you smile!'' Elly threw herself at her father in a hug, before jumping off and prancing down the hallway.

''I hope we don't live to regret this,'' Jennifer said to her husband.

* * *

 **Do I detect a spark between our protagonists? Also, I decided to do a chapter from the villains POV in order to establish a dynamic with them.**

 **I also brought in a little mention of Dudley/Pansy's pasts in this. Both of them have more than their fair share of regrets. I'm still contemplating how each of them is going to reveal their history with Harry.**

 **Finally, as unpleasant as Dudley and Pansy both were, I think you'll agree that they pale in comparison to Elly.**

 **Please leave a review and say what you think!**


	4. Chapter 4

As Dudley and Pansy stood in silence, feeling every single second pass by, they started to wonder if Glenn's plan was simply to leave them there until they starve to death. Dudley had taken to telling stupid jokes in order to pass the time.

''What do you call a deer with no eyes?'' he asked.

Pansy shook her head

''No idea!'' he laughed at his own joke. Pansy found it funnier than she should have done.

''How long do you think we've been here?'' Pansy questioned.

''Hours at the least,'' Dudley replied. Suddenly, they heard the sound of the lock turning, and a powerfully built young man entered the room.

''We don't have much time,'' he told them.

''What?'' Dudley replied slowly.

''I can get you out of here, but we need to work fast!'' he said, undoing the handcuffs binding the two.

''Why are you helping us?'' Pansy asked, unsure if she could trust this man.

''Because I've worked for Glenn for a while, and I want out,'' the man told them, ''I've seen what he does to people. I can't keep being a part of it.''

''How do we get out of the house?'' Dudley asked.

''On site security patrol most of the building and the outside,'' the man explained to them, ''If you can evade them and get out of the back door, make it to the fence outside, it's heavily fortified but there's an open gate on the far right of it for covert deliveries. If you can get through that you can get into the forest area outside of Glenn's land. That's your ticket to freedom.''

''And if we bump into security on the way?'' Pansy questioned.

The man pulled a gun out of his pocket and handed it to Dudley, ''If you bump into security, you point this at their heads.''

Dudley shuddered as the full weight of their challenge hit him. He had never used a gun before. He was a fairly decent fighter thanks to his boxing training, but he was going up against trained professionals, using a gun against them when they had guns of their own, and much better knowledge of how to use them.

The man patted Dudley on the shoulder and turned to leave the room, ''Good luck,'' he said to them.

''I'm scared, Dudley,'' Pansy admitted.

''Me too,'' Dudley replied trying to think of a movie-style line to make himself sound cool, ''But that's what makes it so exciting!''

''You sound like a Gryffindor!'' Pansy remarked distastefully, though she was smirking all the while.

Dudley had no idea what a 'Gryffindor' was. He supposed he would have to ask Harry about it if they survived this.

* * *

Elly sat in her room playing some music and chatting to one of her friends. She took a drag off the joint her man had rolled for her before he left and felt herself getting more and more spaced out.

''I'm telling you, babe,'' she told her best friend Jess over the phone, ''This holiday is gonna be so amazing!''

The two of them and a few other girls from uni were planning to go on holiday during their holiday period.

''Sun, sea, and hot guys!'' Jess cheered.

''No guys for me!'' Elly stopped her, ''I've just met someone special.''

''Oh!'' Jess smiled, ''Who's that?''

''Let's just say we met through my dad,'' Elly replied. Her daddy was responsible for practically everything in her life. She'd gotten her super brain from him. Her professors thought she was the brightest student they'd ever had, and now daddy had gotten her two test subjects, to do whatever she pleased...

* * *

Dudley and Pansy made it into the downstairs hallway. Through there, they could get into the living room and out of the house, if not for the fact that there was a guard in the way, his back to them. Dudley thought about using the gun, but didn't want to attract attention.

Instead, Dudley crept up besides the guard and wrapped his arms around the man's neck, being sure to cover his mouth. He struggled and was eventually able to bring the man to the ground. The guard wasn't giving up that easily however, and continued to punch and claw at him. Dudley drew the gun and whacked the man over the head with it, knocking him unconscious.

''Come on!'' Pansy hurried him. Dudley was horrified by what he'd just done and it took him a second to come to his senses and keep going.

Glenn's living room was probably larger than the Dursley's entire house. The two took a second to admire it before hurrying towards the door.

''What if it's locked?'' Pansy panicked.

''Well, try it then!'' Dudley responded.

''Alright!'' Pansy bickered back. She tried to open the door, and thankfully is was unlocked. The two hurried out into Glenn's enormous garden, which wasn't quite as impressive as the one at Parkinson Manor.

''Far right of the back fence,'' Dudley reminded her. Pansy nodded and the two ran onwards. Negotiating the grass was hardly easy in Pansy's stilettos, but the alternative was taking them off and running barefoot, and she was _far_ too classy for that. Looking back, she could see Glenn's guards on patrol around the front and sides of the house, but everything behind lay suspiciously unguarded. Pansy could only hope they were not running into a trap.

''I can almost taste freedom,'' Dudley said gleefully.

''All I can taste is humid air,'' Pansy remarked.

''Are you this miserable all the time?'' Dudley asked.

''Yes,'' Pansy replied with a smirk.

''You should sue them,'' Dudley joked.

''Sue who?''

''The school of happiness.''

Pansy giggled at this. She did have a lot of good memories from Hogwarts, but it certainly wasn't a place she remembered as a ''school of happiness''.

Finally, the back fence drew closer. It had to be at least fifteen feet high. This place seemed more like a fortress than a mansion. The gate their saviour had described was there however, and from what they could see, it was unlocked!

Dudley tried to open it, but although it was unlocked, it wouldn't budge. It was clear that this door hadn't been opened in a long time.

''Open, you stupid piece of...'' he shouted in frustration. He pulled and pulled but it did no good.

''It's not going to work,'' Pansy sighed, anxious to stop him shouting in case it alerted Glenn's guards.

''There is another idea,'' Dudley started.

''Pray tell?'' Pansy replied, sounding more like her mother than she'd like to admit.

''Magic!''

''I don't have my wand, Dudley!'' Pansy argued.

Dudley knew she was right, but he also knew that Harry had done some strange things even before he had gotten his wand, before he even knew he was a wizard.

''You wizards don't always need wands,'' Dudley encouraged, ''Please Pansy, I know you can do this.''

Pansy's eyes filled up with tears. She'd never had someone show that kind of faith in her before. Could she do it though? Wandless magic was extremely difficult. All she needed to do was pull the gate backwards a little, enough for Dudley to get his hands in and pull it back.

She shut her eyes and started to breath heavily, concentrating on the gate, homing in on it, feeling her energy flowing towards it. It was taking all of her willpower not to make this concentration. If her mind wandered then the spell was broken.

Finally, she heard the sound of metal grinding. It had worked. Dudley rushed to the gate and pulled it wide open.

''Well done, Pansy!'' he cheered.

''Well done, indeed!'' A voice called behind them. The two whirled around to see none other than Glenn himself standing in front of them.

Dudley knew he had to act fast. He pulled out the gun and pointed it at the man, who smirked at them. Dudley pulled the trigger and...

Nothing happened.

''But... how?'' Pansy started. She turned back to see guards moving into position outside the gate, and at the lead of them was the man who had given Dudley the gun and told them how to escape. But it all made sense. Entangling the man in a spiderlike embrace was Elly, and he pressed his lips to hers in a slobbering kiss.

''Aww,'' the sick minded medical student giggled, ''They fell for our little prank!''

''Yes they did,'' Glenn smirked, ''I wanted to see how capable you two were, whether you could be of better use to me.'' He turned to Dudley, ''You're a capable fighter, boy. Bit of training and you could be one of my finest.'' He turned to Pansy, ''And you, little missy, I've never seen anything like that display with the gate. You opened it without even touching it, and earlier, you took down one of my men with a twig. I want to know what exactly you are. I think little Elly has the brains to test your abilities.''

Pansy went pale at the thought of being used in Elly's disgusting experiments. The guards stepped forward and handcuffed them both.

''You've both got bright futures ahead,'' Glenn laughed.

* * *

 **Hey guys, sorry I haven't updated in forever. Work and family matters have been weighing me down and I forgot about this story for a while. I am truly sorry. I will continue to update but I can't promise when the next one will be. I do have the rest of the story mapped out so I know where it goes from here and how it ends. Hope that's OK.**

 **Please leave a review and say what you think!**


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